A taste of normalcy
by carolinastylus
Summary: living in muggle England (I know it's a cliche), as a muggle studies project. scrapes, laughter and unfavourable housemates galore. PLEASE READ (it will get better, and longer, very soon)
1. Default Chapter

Hi,  
  
I'm just starting this one – bear with me, I promise it will get better! And don't forget – read and review, because no-one did for my last one and it made me feel very sad indeed. Just to let me know someone's there!  
  
Chapter One  
  
"Do stop moaning, Ron, I promise you, it's coming!" One gloomy afternoon, the trio could be found at a rather anonymous train station, on the outskirts of a fairly average town, somewhere in the middle of England. Built up around them, on a row of three plastic chairs were the following: Two neat blue suitcases (matching) A rather singed leather holdall, with the letters RH just visible under an unsightly stain An owl cage, stuffed with an array of lumpy jumpers, and oddly sized trousers A Zonko's Joke Shop carrier bag, crumpled (having hastily been turned inside out) A much-patched rucksack A hat box, circled many times with spellotape  
  
Perching on a blue case, Hermione pulled out a biro from her pocket and flipped to the crossword on the back of her newspaper. Suddenly, her hair began to flap and blow around her face, there was a huge screeching and a bright yellow train pulled into the platform opposite them. Harry pulled his scarf around himself tighter, Ron, terrified, shrieked at the noise; Hermione filled in 7 down.  
  
"We'll be going in one of those?" Ron whimpered, "Any minute now", said Harry, glancing at his watch, at which Ron looked distinctly unhappy and muttered something about "avoiding things" where "you can't see its brain". Suddenly, the announcement came over the loudspeakers – "The 14:01 from Manchester Piccadilly to London Euston, calling at ..... Northford..., , , " "Oh, that's us!" exclaimed Hermione. She lifted her cases and elbowed Ron, who was staring intently at the ceiling, trying to locate the voice. "Off we go Ron, mind the gap!" she said cheerfully, and the motley crew stepped aboard.  
  
The train rattles out from the station, and we see the group more clearly. Harry has cosied himself in a corner, the bags stacked up opposite him. Hermione and Ron are in the aisle seats, around the table. Ron was surveying his luggage somewhat miserably. "I just don't have anything!" he lamented, "everything I own has magic in it! Even my jeans are anti-stain, so mum couldn't tell what Fred and George had been up to! All I have is a bird cage of jumpers, and a pair of [he enunciated this carefully] track- suit trousers!"  
  
Hermione softened, the stress of travelling momentarily gone, "I'm sure you've got nothing to worry about Ron – they wouldn't let us do anything dangerous!"  
  
The train lurched (as English trains often do), and Hermione pulled out the map and started to show Ron the route, "Look, we're nearly there – all we have to do is go through Rutherton and Hillborough, and then it's us!" She drew a wobbly line with her pen; Ron's eyes widened – why don't I have one of those?" he whispered, overcome by this inkless-wand/ quill contraption.  
  
Hermione sighed, and threw her (unfinished) crossword, with the offending pen, on the chair opposite, and took out the envelope they had each been given.  
  
Dear students (the letter read),  
  
To help you revise for your forthcoming exams ["You don't need help, Hermione!" Harry exclaimed, to which Ron replied "Yeah, but she can't get enough of it can she! The more the merrier, as Hermione likes to say when it comes to revision. Every little helps as she- "Ron do be quiet!", Hermione snapped, "in fact, I just thought it would be very funny to see how you coped with things. So far, I've been right!" Ron turned pink, and took over the reading of the letter] the muggle studies department of school has organised a trip for you to spend a fortnight as muggles, in an average muggle town. To do this, you will be divided into small groups, including (for the sake of numbers), at least two members who have grown up with muggles so you are not totally at a loss.  
  
In this time, you will attend a muggle school, go shopping, cook, discover muggle entertainments as well as numerous other surprises just waiting to be discovered! Every day, we will make contact with you and give you another task to complete; if you ever need us, you can dial 0800 HOGWARTS on the telephone (they measure 6x 8 inches; lift receiver, press numbers, put top of receiver to ear and speak into bottom part). Today, you must reach your town on the train, then walk to your house (they have deliberately been chosen as close to the station), the address of which is given below:  
  
8 Ashcroft Road, Northford  
  
To enter your house, use this key. After that, it's up to you!  
  
Warmest regards,  
  
Professor Heckler  
  
The train shuddered to a halt at the station, the three gathered their bags, and off they stepped onto the grey platform. 


	2. The rest of the party

Chapter Two  
  
Hi again,  
  
Thanks so much to Lady Belladonna Noire for reviewing – I'm really sorry about the punctuation, I think you mean the bits when I had lists in it – I tried to start each item on a new line when I wrote it, but I couldn't make the formatting work – if anyone has any ideas about how to use bold or other formatting things like that, I'd be very grateful,  
  
Oh yeah, I don't own anything, apart from the things you don't recognise  
  
"Don't be stupid, Goyle. There's no point in taking a stinking muggle train all the way to Idiotville, or wherever we're going. Father's set us up a portkey so we can go to my house for the morning, then we'll pick up the train for one last stop."  
  
A very different group of three students were sneaking through the concrete walls of the station, out into the drizzle of the small town. Flicking his head around, the smallest of them spotted a tangled old skipping rope in the long grass near the door, and jerking his head towards it, one of the two chimpanzee-types with him lumbered along to pick it up.  
  
"Follow me", snapped the boy, running a hand through his white hair as two muggle girls strolled past. The three boys entered the men's bathroom (though not without a definite sneer from the blonde one), which was empty, as luck ( or a suspiciously placed 'out of order' sign) would have it, and each placed an unwilling finger on the soggy rope. "the 14:50 for Malfoy Manor, Wiltshire" came a voice, and in a flash of green light they found themselves outside a gaudy pair of black iron gateposts, in the heart of the British countryside. 


	3. The housemates meet

Most of its JKR's

Chapter 3

The church clock in the village was just striking 6 as the door of number 8, Ashcroft Road, rattled on his hinges. At the third chime, there was a shrill voice outside the door: 'No, Ron, TURN the key!', followed by more rattling, a scuffle, and a brown haired girl swinging the door open.

Inside, it was not dissimilar to the Dursleys' house (though whether this made Harry more or less at home was entirely another question). The hall was narrow, with stairs to the left, padded in a floral carpet (which Ron rudely wrinkled his nose at), and a door to the right passing into a large open living room. The front of the house held a sitting area, with two sofas and an armchair and a TV; behind it was an oval table and chairs and a white, shiny kitchen.

"Bedrooms upstairs" said Harry, nodded his head to the rooms up the stairs.

"This'll be us" he added, finding a small twin room, and throwing his rucksack onto one of the beds ("I wanted the window!" whinged Ron), and Hermione did likewise into a small, cupboard-sized room, with a bed, a small table and a bookshelf in.

Whilst she was unpacking her small bag, and Ron was dragging his and her cases up the stairs, Harry wandered round the rest of the floor (which didn't take long at all) – the only other rooms were a bathroom ("nice rug" snickered Ron at the bathmat) and a three-bed room. "I wonder who we'll be sharing with?" pondered Harry aloud, to which came a worried response from Hermione's cupboard:

"I've been thinking about that too, and I don't like it at all. They're going to have to spread the pure-bloods around, so obviously the houses are going to be mixed. We've already got the two muggle-raised, so where are our roommates probably going to come from?" She raised an eyebrow.

As the light dawned on Harry, the panic began to spread across his face, but suddenly, his grimace was interrupted by a shout from the lounge.

"Harry! Harry!"

"Ron, I'm busy – hang on!"

"No, Harry, Hermione, come here right away!"

"Ron, if this is just another spider I'll-" muttered Harry as the two traipsed downstairs, but he paused as he saw what Ron was pointing at. There, in front of the fireplace was a "Midlands Moths" sports bag, a lumpy brown holdall and a glossy, charcoal leather suitcase, with a monogrammed tag.

"I think I can guess who our housemates are" said Ron, gloomily, when at that moment, they heard a demanding knock from the door.

Ron ambled over to open it, and was greeted by a long drawl:

"Doorman? Have you been promoted, Weasley? I knew something like this would happen, Heckler's always talking about 'integration' and all that democracy tosh he gets from that comic he reads-"

"The Guardian isn't a comic, Malfoy, it's a very well respected Mug-"

"Oh do shut up Granger, no-one cares, and put the tea on"

At this, Ron lunged at him, but tripped over Malfoy's monogrammed rucksack to fall, flat and embarrassed, at the quarrelling duo's feet. Hermione immediately bent down to help pick him up, and dragged him over to the kitchen to make him a pot of tea.


End file.
